


Calls to Tenebris

by PendulumTess



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Inspired by Sanders Sides, Major Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Sympathetic Deceit Sanders, YouTube
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-07
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2020-01-06 13:38:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18389507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PendulumTess/pseuds/PendulumTess
Summary: This is a universe in which there is further exploration of "the darkness". What makes a side "dark" versus "light"?Is there any truth to this division at all, or was the name Roman bestowed upon certain facets of Thomas's mindscape a form of oversimplification?After all: "Dark" and "Evil" are far from synonymous.





	1. Called to a Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan has nagging thoughts about the future of the mindscape as a whole, and he calls for the other sides to discuss these concerns.

Thomas was  _ finally _ asleep. Gosh knows what hour of the night it was at this time. It didn’t matter. Ever since Deceit made his first full appearance into the dilemma filled world of Thomas’s mindscape, Logan had been up later than the rest, calculating any and all probabilities of…  _ the others _ .

However, his experience was rather limited even with the meticulousness of cation. After all, he only had access to a single corner of  _ that place _ , and who the heck knows what the others would think if he ever admitted that he had been  _ willingly _ exploring that sector of the mind alone.

So instead, he opted for a meeting in his room. Adjusting his glasses, a wary hand was raised to call upon Patton, Roman, and Virgil. Hopefully, they were not asleep just yet…

Virgil was the first to arrive, appearing in his sudden fashion with an eyebrow raised. He slid his headphones down from his ears and around his neck, the soft tune of violin faintly reverberating through their speakers due to the volume he had the music at. He was without his hoodie, simply dressed in a purple long sleeved shirt and some black boxers. “Logan...? Why am I here?”

The logical side simply ran his fingers through slicked-back locks, his back turned as Patton was next to show up.

When the moral side arrived, his eyes were wide from under the hood of his cat onesie. He had a pint of ice cream and a spoon in hand, both of which were quickly recalled away from their summoned state to continue snacking later. “Boy, that was sudden! What’s with the late night get together?” Patton paused before he pressed his paw adorned hands to his cheeks. “Are we having  _ a sleepover _ ?”

“I… don’t think that’s why the debate captain called us over, Patton.” Virgil simply pointed in Logan’s direction, as the logician was now pacing back and forth in a steadily ebbing impatience. His eyes looked slightly bloodshot, and the other two wondered how long it had been since he last slept.

The fatherly side seemed to pout in disappointment, but it soon melted back into a cheery smile as he led himself and Virgil to some nearby chairs. “Oh… Well, that’s okay! We wouldn’t have been invited if it wasn’t important.”

“…Well, this gathering  _ better  _ be important! I was in the middle of revising my newest script!”

With that boisterously dramatic tone, it was safe to say that Roman finally made it over, fashionably late of course. He was adorned in gold silk pajamas, a fountain pen tucked away behind his ear as his eyes almost held a reddened tint of their own. The only difference was he was wide awake, crossing his arms with an irritated huff before a narrowed gaze shot across the room. Upon glancing at the state of Logan, however, the prince’s visage soon furrowed in mild concern before picking out a seat.

The logical side finally turned on his heel, a quiet sigh parting from his lips before he spoke in monotoned quietness. “I apologize for summoning you all at this late hour, but I’ve had something on my mind for quite a while now, and I am unsure what to do…  _ if _ anything can be done at all.”

Roman, Patton, and Virgil all paused, glancing at one another rather uncomfortably before shifting their eyes back over to Logan.

“… _ If _ , Logan?” Patton spoke up first, confusion starting to become worry.

“You’re not one to usually state ‘if’ on anything,” grumbled Virgil, pulling at the sleeves of his shirt.

“Well, calculator watch, we’re all listening…” Roman was uncharacteristically quiet, leaning slightly forward in his chair with hands neatly folded over one another. His gaze seemed intent, the former script definitely knocked off of the royalty’s priority list.

They all were at attention, three sets of eyes following Logan’s movements he leaned against a wall. Removing his glasses to pinch the bridge of his nose at an oncoming headache, he spoke up once again.

“As you all know, it’s been a little while since Deceit made his first appearance. Granted, the snake in the grass hasn’t proven to be much more than a mild taunting… but I began thinking…” Logan placed his glasses back on, looking at the others as his voice dropped an octave to emphasize the seriousness of the next inquiry.

“How long will it be before  _ the others _ decide to surface?”

There was a pause, silence completely filling the room like a dense fog of tension before the logical side added to his diction.

“And more importantly, how will they tower in comparison to Deceit? We all know that a man of lies isn’t the worst of manifestations that can be conjured from these individualized traits, and we all know the possibilities that lurk beyond the illuminated walls of this mindscape.”

“Well, it depends on who decides to arrive at the party first.”

Virgil was the one to speak in the initial response, which wasn’t a surprise. While it was unspoken, they knew that he had the most experience when it came to interactions with… the others. “If I had to guess, perhaps—“

“Oh, let it be any of them! We can take them on the same way we took on snake face,” Roman interrupted, pointedly glaring at Virgil and growing slightly annoyed with the dreary way this conversation was going.

“Perhaps they won’t be as bad as you think, Logan…” Patton was trying to keep an optimistic approach, but the slight fidgeting in his seat was enough to hint at the growing concern underneath that bubbly exterior.

“Well… I wouldn’t know for sure. But we can never be too cautious. And Roman, while I get that you want your voice to be heard, I ask you kindly to be a bit more tactful when you speak next.” Logan eyed the prince for a few seconds, which was enough to signify that further outbursts were not to be tolerated.

So instead, Roman took a breath before speaking in a more level-headed tonality. “Look… we have just about no way of knowing who is to appear next, alright? None of us do, for our perspectives are all limited on the subject. Even yours, Virgil.”

The anxious side would merely nod in turn before Roman continued. “Perhaps it is best to simply remain on guard. I’m sure that… if we’re all present when the next dark side appears, we will be ready as long as we work together.”

There was another pause, Virgil sighing in resignation and shaking his head. “I’m afraid Princey is right, Logan. We’re not capable of stopping these appearances, even if we were to make such an attempt. The best we can do is be ready to assist Thomas as each one appears.”

Patton hopped up from his seat, moving over towards Logan and wrapping an arm around the logician’s shoulders in reassurance. “I agree! Surely we can create a solution when that time comes, but for now, we need to focus on balancing out Thomas himself.”

Dipping his head for a moment in silent pondering, Logan allowed a faint smile to cross his lips before finally nodding along. “I suppose you all have a fair point. We can cross that bridge when we get there…”

Whether his concurrence was genuine was impossible for the others to read, but they hoped his borderline neuroticism on the subject could be eased… at least for tonight.

Patton was quick to embrace him, the others soon getting up and joining in on the brief group hug. Stifling an incoming yawn, the moral side let go of them all a few moments later. “That’s the spirit! For now, we should all get some rest. Thomas has a long day ahead tomorrow. Goodnight, everyone.”

With that, the dad figure was gone, probably off to finish his ice cream before bed. Virgil simply gave a quiet two finger wave to the others, soon following suit in a swift exit back to his own room.

Roman wavered for a minute, pacing in a small circle before speaking up in a bit of a hesitant whisper. “Logan...? Do... Do you truly theorize that the other dark sides are as bad as the name I made implies?”

The logical side paused as he was removing his tie, slightly miffed by the question as he hung the article of clothing upon a small hook in the wall. It was a strange inquiry to be asked by  _ Roman _ of all the sides, especially when it was he who took the longest to even grow accustomed to Virgil.

“I… I do not know, Roman. If I were completely honest, I wish for greater insight on those who reside in the darkness of Thomas’s mind, but I also cannot shake my wariness entirely in the name of curiosity.”

He was hoping that was enough of an answer, his tired gaze meeting Roman’s for a few moments. The prince seemed to be almost searching for any other implication behind those words, but Logan was a master of displaying nothing too decipherable behind the windows of his lenses.

“Fair enough. Goodnight, Specs; I’ll see you in the morning.” The flamboyant royal gave a smile and wave before vanishing back to his room.

Logan was now left to silently ponder the conversation that was had on this night. He collapsed into his desk chair, unbuttoning his polo and placing his glasses upon the desk before burying his face into his hands.

For now, the meeting was adjourned, but the subject matter remained hovering about his psyche. Tomorrow would be a new day, and his research would continue in this quest to  _ understand _ “the darkness”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! This is just the beginning.


	2. Eye for an Eye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Logan reflects upon… certain events, and sets out to have a stern conversation. He sets out to the corner of the mind where he has access to… that place.
> 
> This takes place shortly after the “Learning New Things About Ourselves” episode.

_I cannot believe this… That crack in demeanor was completely and utterly unacceptable!_

Logan grit his teeth at the mere thought of what happened the other day, a clenched fist immediately slamming into his work desk in unresolved, simmering frustration. He dare not say those words aloud, even if no one was around to hear them at this time of night. He dare not admit to the complete and utter _wrong_ that he had committed, even in the unequivocal safety of his own room within the mindscape.

_I know that emotions and their influence are not my strong suit. They never were, and they never will be. However, there was more to it tonight. I… I felt the shift that threatened to take place. This must be controlled immediately. I must regain control…_

The nerd furiously shakes his head as he rises from his chair, cracking tense knuckles with a bitter huff before moving towards the door. The hour was late, so he had to be quiet. Not that it was difficult… he was used to having been restricted in silence in one way or another. Nights like these are no different.

_This utterly vexing routine is no different._

Did the other sides not get that perhaps, just one time, it would have been helpful to approach the logical side in a way of reasoning, rather than solely demean him through his lack of EQ? It made his chest constrict in a way where he had to hide behind a stiff straightening of his tie or an adjustment of his glasses, and they seemed to take no notice. They refuse to even _attempt_ to understand him like he was constantly aiming to understand them, and he knew the building counter-effect that would inevitably take place because of it.

The door barely makes a sound as it opens and shuts behind Logan upon leaving his room, carrying himself down the hallway opposite of where the other “light sides” had their doors located. Although it is never spoken of, this is one of the routes, or ‘parallel pathways’ as they were called, to get to _that place_. It is wandering past Virgil’s room, right up to the wall that supposedly cut off the hall at its predetermined end, and then straight through it with a head held high in determined focus. If one hesitates, they will not be able to pass through. The mindscape held many connecting paths, and being incarnate of the mind itself, he knew his way around the majority of them.

Once Logan reaches the other side, he is quick to be surrounded in complete darkness, his eyes struggling to adjust to the all-encompassing black. Not that it mattered too much, as his feet continue to carry him in the direction he needs to go. It is practically intuitive at this point, given the number of previous navigations unbeknownst to anyone else. He doubted anyone would be willing to follow him anyway…

Soon, looming silhouettes wall his path on either side, his sight calibrating to comprehend their form. Towering shelves to rival Logan’s own line his way, the wooden structures severely desecrated in several scorch marks and burns from all different points of time. However, the books along them remain unscathed, apart from the slight wear and tear of many reads and the occasional coating of dusty ash from those relatively untouched. Logan did not stop to ponder. However, his focus narrows towards a flickering light in the epicenter of the frigid room.

A few more feet until his destination, reaching the amber fire that was openly lit in the core of the space. The logical facet crosses his arms, peering into the flames for a minute or two before calling out into the open vicinity:

“By now, I shouldn’t have to beckon you forward to these meetings. You know why I am here, so I highly suggest you step into view so that we may talk.”

“Oh, but what would be the fun in that?” A deep, gravelly voice rings out from beside Logan, leaving the side to pivot and face its source. The figure steps closer, soon standing beside him at the fire as it illuminated his presence. “Besides, I implore you to tell me why you are here, for it may not be in accordance to the reason _I_ have in mind.”

Logan’s brows furrow together, one hand adjusting to his glasses with a gentle twitch of the eye in annoyance. “You should know by now that I do not take kindly to your little attempts to release your expression through _my_ actions. We have discussed many times before that—”

“That what, _Logic_ ?” The figure sneers as he abruptly cut him off. “That you are to always be rigid and sound? That you are to simply remain out there, cast in an emotionally voided stasis of perpetual neutrality?” The other’s next statement is almost accented in a snarl, his damaged gaze unflinching as it locked upon Logan’s with a burning strong enough to match the flames beside them. “... because we _both_ know that is far from the underlying truth, whether you can accept it or not.”

 _“Falsehood!”_ Rather than his voice raising as it normally did amongst the others, Logan’s tonality instead deepens to match the stranger’s, his own frustration seeping into every word. “I am to be the voice of reason amongst everyone else; therefore it is not my place to allow these futile and unproductive means of defense to surface where they are unsound.”

“...But are they truly so unsound, logician?” The other’s voice suddenly drops, sinking out only to reappear just behind Logan with a hand gripping his shoulder. “I’m afraid it is _you_ who doesn’t understand the point here…”

Logan grimaces as he feels his shoulder burn under the hold, jerking himself away from the figure’s touch as he shuffles a few steps back. This only left the other to continue his testament, finally having his visitor’s full attention.

“Here is your problem, Logic...” As the figure speaks, he paces around the pyre, his eyes seeming to glow amongst the open flames. “No matter how much you may analyze, rationalize, categorize, and internalize… you know as well as I that everything can’t remain buried forever. As frigid and stiff as your place may seem, you know of their faults in treatment when it comes to these dilemmas you all seem to share, but they seem just _so_ ignorant to yours.”

There would be a pause, the other’s hand hovering over the fire as it grew under the simple gesture. “And _I_ know how it makes you feel, just as _I_ know when it comes to the others’ similar feelings in their own situations, even when _you_ refuse to acknowledge what is really going on beneath the surface.”

Logan did not even know how to formulate a response, feeling a heaviness in his head as he let it lower to stare at the floor. He could not reply because there was no counterargument to make here. They both knew that even if it went unspoken, the logical side was simply holding off the inevitable.

_Then... what am I supposed to do?_

He came here for a discussion in order to retain control, but in the process, he realized just how little control he had in a territory outside of his own. No one had any kind of high ground in the mindscape; any form of belief revolving such was as artificial as the names Roman formulated to categorize the sides as a whole, and as illusionary as the blackness that encompassed them here.

Perhaps... it was a worthwhile lesson to be aware of now, so that he may be more prepared for what could lie ahead. So with a scowl, he adjusts his tie and looks towards the man across the fire before lowering his voice to monotone, “It seems… that I have a lot to consider. However, I implore you to watch your actions in the future, just as everyone else here with you.” Logan spun on a heel, beginning to walk back down the pathway. “Farewell, and goodnight.”

“Actually, one more point to make before you go…” By the time Logan would turn his head, the figure would vanish from sight, the pyre flaring up high enough to ominously tower over the massive shelves. His voice, however, still spoke out into the open air:

_“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind, as they say. One of us has already surfaced to claim, and another is set to be on his way. So how long do you estimate, Logic, before we all receive our turn in the ‘light’ of day?”_

And just like that, the fire extinguishes itself, devolving the space into complete darkness once more. Logan did not have an answer, simply shaking his head before making haste back to his room. This conversation is over… _for now_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed a bit of foreshadowing after that episode.  
> I’m also just… super slow at writing. I thank everyone for their patience.
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	3. Just Biding Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s been a few days since they were all called to a meeting by Logan in the middle of the night.  
> Roman is simply getting ready, for the sides were to film a new episode with Thomas soon.

“Hm… what is to play next?”

Roman elegantly strides around his room of the imagination’s castle, getting ready for an upcoming filming session with Thomas and the others. His music is on shuffle with various songs in the process, and between pauses, voices of the characters Thomas’s imagination created flit in and out of earshot. A few from his own concocted adventures are heard as well, though all dialogue outside of his room is muffled out in favor of the dramatic tune that plays next: _Be Prepared_ , the iconic villainous song from the soundtrack of “The Lion King”.

“My my… _how appropriate_ .” Grinning at his own reflection, the royal side makes a few adjustments to his blood red sash whilst humming along. It is perfect for the upcoming video. After all, what could be more menacing than a _true villain_?

Soon he would exit his room, heading through the corridor and descending a spiraling staircase as the music plays throughout the vicinity. Occasionally, he would sing along on the way down.

 

> ♬ “And injustice deliciously squared.  
> Be prepared…” ♬

Before he is to leave, however, there was a visit to pay. Walking through a particularly hidden door and down another short flight of stairs, Roman peers into another standing mirror. Within is another male figure: an antagonistic character from his latest venture. The music pauses as this man looks up through the looking glass, weary eyes glaring over at the royal from within the darkness in a fiery, yet silent anger.

“Oh dear, are _you_ not a fan of this song? Granted, it doesn’t quite fit _my_ aesthetic choice either… but the timing is simply too good to pass up.”

He proceeds to draw a sword from its sheath for only a few moments, his own smoldering gaze reflecting upon the blade with a knowing smirk. There is no flare in the gesture, simply a calm sense of triumph. “After all, one as nefarious in villainy such as yourself must understand that _your_ actions have consequences. If only _you_ knew how to listen, you gilded pauper.”

The figure tries to speak, but all words are drowned out into silence as the song starts up once again. The ruling side departed from the chamber, belting out the words as he has heard them sung so many times before.

 

> ♬ “…Meticulous planning,  
>  Tenacity spanning.   
>  Decades of denial   
>  Is simply why I’ll   
>  Be _King_ , undisputed,   
>  Respected, saluted,   
>  And seen for the wonder I am.   
>    
>  Yes, my teeth and ambitions are bared.   
> Be prepared.” ♬

The song proceeds to end as a different voice calls out into the castle.

“Roman! Where are you? We only have a few minutes until Thomas is to call for us. Do you seriously wish to be late for filming, again?”

“I’ll be out shortly, Logan! The song just ended.”

A shutting of the imagination’s main door seems to signify that the logical side is satisfied with the answer provided, leaving the creative side to head towards that very exit.

However, he decides to take one last glance at his own reflection before making his way out into the mindscape, snapping his fingers as a crimson sheen sparks in his eyes with excitement. He looks like the spitting image of _true, deserving royalty_.

 _It is showtime at last._

 

> ♬ “Yes, our teeth and ambitions are bared.  
>  _Be prepared…_ ” ♬

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s just a normal day in the life of "Prince Roman".
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
